Make Mine A Double.

First off, let me say how pleased I am to be the newest columnist for Mommy Track’d! I am honored to have been given a space working with founder Amy Keroes and among my peers. Allow me to give you a little background before I start my official column: My name is Stefanie Wilder-Taylor. Last year, by way of introduction, I would have told you that I used to be a television writer but now I am a mother to a 3 ½ year old daughter, who is the light of my life, and the author of the book, Sippy Cups Are Not for Chardonnay: And Other Things I Had to Learn as a New Mom [1]. A lot can change in a year.

Around May of last year I found out I was pregnant again. The pregnancy started out normally, if by normal you’re used to horrendous morning sickness, daily spotting and a doctor who at five weeks told me I had about a 50/50 chance of the pregnancy being viable. This was followed by a massive bleed at eight weeks, leading me to believe that a miscarriage was a foregone conclusion. Except that during the ultrasound at the ER instead of no baby, I was informed I was carrying twins and immediately burst into tears. They weren’t tears of joy. I never imagined myself as the mother of three children. To be honest, I hadn’t been super crazy at the idea of two. But here I was – two buns in the oven.

I tried to be optimistic. Hey, I’m good at multitasking! I can watch TV, read a magazine, eat a Ding Dong and talk on the phone while simultaneously switching from Blues Clues to Wonderpets for my toddler without missing a beat. On the other hand, I’m seriously not a morning person. Deep down I knew I was screwed. I was on a deadline for book number two: Naptime Is the New Happy Hour: And Other Ways Toddlers Turn Your Life Upside Down [2] and trying to deal with the challenging task of finding a suitable preschool for my daughter.

November 26th of ‘07, I gave birth to Sadie and Matilda, who were born prematurely at 2 pounds and 4 pounds respectively. I don’t know if I’d go as far as to say I’m “doubly blessed” as so many strangers insist I am – strangers who don’t live in my house and aren’t in charge of buying double the diapers, double the formula and hearing double the screaming for no apparent reason. But there is fun to be had, as long as my meds are taken at regular intervals.

I am currently working on my third book (the deadline is September but that is seriously wishful thinking), taking my smaller twin to numerous doctors’ appointments because she is having trouble putting on weight – at eight-months-old she is a mere 11.10 oz. but who’s counting, right? Okay, me, obsessively. This baby has had more therapists attending to her than I’ve had in my entire life and that is saying a lot!

I’m a big believer in the healing powers of therapy, Xanax, Baby Einstein, Infant Motrin, Baked Lays and reality television and I have little faith in horoscopes, The Secret, anything I hear on Oprah and anyone who gets into a relationship with Lance Armstrong.

I hope you’ll join me every week as I chronicle my juggling prowess with work, kids, doctors, caffeine and marriage!